Saturday, May 19, 2007

Emotionally satisfying

The very nice brunch at Rumi arrived – some spiced rice (different to the apricot and almond on the menu), warm beans in thick tahini, pickled vegetables and olives, supplemented with warm flat breads and some yoghurt. A few mouthfuls in, though I appreciated what I was eating I just new it wasn’t going to hit the spot. “This is lovely”, I said to the Significant Eater “but I know it’s not going to emotionally satisfy me”.

I didn’t know what my body wanted. There was a flavour missing, perhaps heat or acridness, maybe a texture – just something that I couldn’t put my finger on. What ever it was, it wasn’t there.

Foods that warm our soul are individual and varied. Some bound to memory, others triggering happy chemicals that will circulate through every cell in the body. Once home, none the wiser to what I was seeking I began to list the known food that truly satisfy me:

Potatoes – almost any way (though just plain boiled is a waste). I once did an emotional eating survey and it surprised me that the humble spud topped my list. I can eat it for breakfast, lunch and dinner, then sneak a little leftover as a snack. But now I’ve trained myself to go for weeks without eating them.

Chocolate – a bit too obvious but even when full to the brim, I usually find a hidden spot known as my “chocolate stomach” where there is always room for one more morsel of the best, darkest chocolate.

Rice – perhaps with less potatoes in my daily diet this one snuck in under the radar. I’ll often have rice at lunch when I am working in the city – in sushi or a variety of ‘don’ Japanese dishes, with tofu and lashings of peanut sauce or basmati with Sri Lankan curries.

Oats – a hot bowl of porridge with a smidge of something sweet on a cold morning.

Coffee – addiction or true satisfaction? That first crema laden mouthful is almost enough for me.

Spaghetti marinara – although I could easily let myself become the Queen of Stodge I have pasta infrequently but a well made, usually oil based with lashings of garlic, marinara is like a siren call on a traditional Italian menu. Similarly, a well executed pad thai with prawn can hit exactly the same spot.

5 Comments:

I think your list would be almost the same as mine though I have pretty much given up coffee since having the bub which is a miracle, I'm down to one good coffee every week or so if I'm out! To top my list would have to be anything sweet & baked by myself - it gives me greater satsifaction when I have done the cooking for some strange reason

A whacking great sirloin on the bone laying across a mound of garlic-infused mash and the whole lot drowned in a good gravy/sauce.

Or an (increasingly rare) perfect ham, cheese and tomato sandwich in which the cheese is perfectly melted and the toast is perfectly browned in an old-fashioned diner-style cafe with a perfect cappuccino on the side.